Bay of Islands Cruise 1

Hi everyone,

We spent a week exploring the eastern part of the Bay of Islands.  For parts of the week we were in company with FSC sv Halcyon Days II and OCC sv Wild Iris.  It was fun exploring the islands with them.

Hat Island

Below is our track.  We visited Marriott Island, Ataio Bay, Oke Bay, Deep Water Cove then Matauwhi Bay.  On our way to Ataio Bay we took a look at Waiwhapuku Bay on Moturua Island but moved on since the anchor was skating over rock.

Tracks from Opua to Opua

We spent our first night out anchored E of Marriott Island in 4m over thick mud  with sv Halcyon Days II nearby.  It rained for most of the evening and we filled our water tanks from the rain.  By morning the sky was clear.

Departing Opua

Sunrise at Marriott Island

Marriott Island with sv Halcyon Days on the left

We had a good motor/sail N then E to Ataio Bay where Halcyon Days II also joined us.  That afternoon they gave us a ride ashore in their dink and we walked to the SSW side of the island to a small bar/cafe.  Spectacular scenery.

Sailing to Ataio Bay

With sv Halcyon Days II in Ataio Bay

Ashore with Halcyon Days II

Ascending

Big Tree!

Kiwi sheep with a view

We spent only one night at Ataio Bay since the wind was backing from N to W.  We sailed to Oke Bay in company with sv Halcyon Days II, passing between Hat Island and the off-lying rocks.  Later in the afternoon sv Wild Iris joined us and we had a great sundowner on her with all six crew.

Sailing to Oke Bay...

...in company with sv Halcyon Days II

Joined by sv Wild Iris in Oke Bay

We spent two nights in Oke Bay.  It was quite rolly from the N swell but we were anchored in 5m over deep sand.  We waited there until the wind went around to the E which made Deep Water Cove viable.

We scored 'pole position' in Deep Water Cove, in 8m over sand close to shore.  We dinked ashore to walk up the hill but didn't go all the way to Cape Brett.

Zen Again at Deep Water Cove

Ashore at Deep Water Cove

View over Deep Water Cove

We spent two nights at Deep Water Cove with Halcyon Days II, Wild Iris and several other boats.  It's a very pretty spot.  I got started assembling our stern anchor rode, connecting our new 100m-long 14mm 8-braid nylon line to the 15m of 10mm chain chopped off our bow anchor chain.  The assembly lives in a large bag.

Assembling the stern anchor rode

Stern anchor rode stowed

From Deep Water Cove we sailed to Matauwhi Bay just S of Russell, the first capital of New Zealand.  The sail was initially very rolly in a N swell and light NE breeze.  Once we gybed S the ride improved.  On arrival we anchored in 4m over mud.  Wild Iris joined us there.  We refilled our water tanks from the rain that evening.

The following day we dinked ashore with Wild Iris to the Russell Boating Club's dinghy dock.  From there we walked in to Russell.  We spent the morning in the museum which has many interesting exhibits.  The feature is a miniature replica of HMS Endeavour which was actually sailed before going into the museum.  We think it had a crew of three - one handling each mast - with only their heads and shoulders above deck.

Russell Boating Club

Russell

Sailing 1/5 scale HMS Endeavour 

Big Maori war canoes

From the museum we walked into the town centre and had fish'n'chips for lunch on the waterfront.  We then walked up to Flagstaff Hill and down again to the famous Duke of Marlborough hotel on the waterfront.  Great place with excellent beer.

Fush'n'Chups

Exploring around Russell with sv Wild Iris

On Flagstaff Hill

The Duke of Marlborough hotel

In the bar

Sampling the beer

We stayed in Matauwhi Bay for three nights then had a quick motor to Opua.  We timed our arrival at the Bay of Islands Marina for low tide and berthed Zen Again stern-to.  We needed to be stern-to to work on the stern anchor mount.

Testing the bread-maker

Since arriving back in the marina we've been busy fitting the stern anchor.  A custom s/s bracket mounts to the shaped plywood 'pad' previously used by the retired hydro-generator.  We moved the roller assembly from port to starboard quarter.  While dismounted we refurbished it with new rollers fabricated, like the s/s bracket, by local business FishEye Fabrication.  They did a great job.

Stern anchor fitted

The anchor is our original 16kg Manson Supreme which we up-sized to 20kg (and 10mm chain) last year.  It was stowed deep in the forepeak but is now ready for use again.  The assembly is clear of the WindPilot vane gear and its control lines.  The anchor's roll-bar has 1" hose fitted over it to protect the transom.  Hopefully it will prove useful.

We expect to head back out into the Bay of Islands in a few days.  This time we'll probably explore the W side of the Bay.  Looking forward to it.  Perhaps we'll test the stern anchor.

Trust all's well where you are.

Bay of Islands Marina

Hi everyone,

We spent a week in the Bay of Islands Marina after clearing-in.  Great marina costing about $50/night for a 12m berth including live-aboard charge.  Great showers - our first since Panama - but you pay for them separately in 5 minute periods.  Excellent laundry too.

Zen Again in the marina

After arriving and clearing-in on the Wednesday we spent Thursday early morning doing our laundry.  Our friends on OCC sv Wild Iris invited us to share a taxi with them into Paihia to visit the town market.  The market was small but had lots of great stuff.  We stocked up on fruit & veg.  From there we walked out on the jetty for lunch at Charlotte's Kitchen - very nice.  We then walked the 1km or so to the Waitangi Woolworths for more general shopping.  We taxied back to the marina.

Marina building

Laundry

Paihia market

Lunch in Paihia with OCC sv Wild Iris

Paihia waterfront

Later on Thursday we met the crew of local sv Sam.  Like us they plan to cruise the South Island this summer.  They very kindly offered their car for us to use.  On Friday we drove south to Whangarei where we visited Bunnings, K-Mart, Woolworths and Harvey Norman.  Amusing how they're all arranged exactly as in Australia.

Shopping included another supermarket run; replacing our sheets, pillows and cushions; and buying a bread-maker.  The latter will be great not only for making bread but also as a 600W heater 'down south'.

We had lunch with Helen and Steve of OCC sv Cerulean.  We originally met them immediately after they purchased their boat in Gosport, UK.  We cruised in company with them on & off from our post-Covid UK departure to the Caribbean, Colombia and Panama.  It was great to catch up with them again.

On the road

Lunch in Whangarei with OCC sv Cerulean

Booty from Whangarei

Over the weekend we got on with various boat jobs made possible by two chandleries in the marina grounds.  We replaced our old, light-less, northern hemisphere compass with a new southern hemisphere unit.  We stocked up on various consumables such as cleaning fluids, head treatment liquid and hull scrubbing pads.

New compass

We measured-up for a bracket to stow our secondary 16kg Manson Supreme anchor on the stern.  We ordered 100m of 14mm 8-braid nylon rope for the rode.  And we cut 15m of 10mm chain from our main anchor chain, end-for-ending the remainder.  We need an anchor with 100m of rode for some of the Fiordland anchorages.  Local stainless steel fabricators Fisheye will make the bracket.

Test fitting for stern anchor bracket

Fisheye Stainless Steel Fabricators

On Monday we again drove to Whangarei to complete our shopping, visiting Spotlight, K-Mart and Woolworths.  We also visited Hunting and Camping for Bushman insect spray and sandfly-proof netting.  We drove on to Marsden Cove Marina for lunch with sv Island Kea II, Mistral Dancer, Moody Rudie and Thestral.  We won't see them again until next year so it was good to catch up with them all.

Marsden Cove Marina

Brunch at The Marina Cafe

This time sv Sam loaned us their truck.  We had hoped to refill an almost empty 10kg GRP propane bottle.  It turns out only NZ-certified bottles can be filled here - international standards don't count.  So we bought a 9kg metal bottle for our stay here.

The Truck

On Tuesday we met FSC sv Halcyon Days.  They had sailed in from Vanuatu a fortnight before us.  Their sail number is F89 and ours F88.  It was good to meet them and we agreed to do some island hopping in the Bay of Islands over the following week.

FSC F89 sv Halcyon Days II

During this stay we spent two evenings at the Opua Cruising Club.  They're a very active club and have great beer and food.  The nearby General Store is good for essentials and also meat pies.  Nearby also is an excellent fish & chips place.

It was a very busy week but we're now ready for a 'week off' cruising the Bay of Islands.

Trust all's well where you are!

Minerva Reef to New Zealand Passage Summary

Hi everyone,

Here is a summary of our 800nm passage between the North Minerva Reef and Opua in New Zealand.  We sailed in loose company with at least a dozen other yachts.  We had a wide range of conditions.  During the first four days we motored for 50 hours in very light wind.  Then we had to cross a stationary front which gave us 20-30 knot E winds.  On the final night we had to motor for another 10 hours in flat calm and fog.

Bound for New Zealand

Here are the usual plots...

Track

Arrival

Graphs

Here are the vital stats for the passage…

    • Distances/Speeds

        • Route Distance = 790 nm

        • Logged Distance = 763 nm, so we had current assistance overall

        • GPS Distance = 828 nm

        • Duration = 7 days

        • Average speed = 4.9 kt

        • Minimum boat speed = 2.0 kt

        • Maximum boat speed = 6.1 kt

    • Weather

        • Minimum wind speed = 0 kt

        • Average wind speed = 15 knots

        • Maximum wind speed = 25 with gusts to 32

        • Apparent wind angle range = 70 to 150

        • Seas 1-2m

        • Swell 1-3m

        • Cloud varying from 1/8 to 8/8

        • 3/4 to full moon

    • Engine

        • Total = 60 hour

        • Driving = 60 hour

        • Charging = 0 hours

    • Failures

        • None

    • Stars

        • The boat - as always

        • Pelagic autopilot in the light airs

        • WindPilot vane gear in the breeze

The weather for the passage was interesting.  We had always expected to encounter a front since they come through too frequently for us to avoid.  But we ended up with a stationary front to cross, with mid--level troughs above too.  Here are two synoptic charts from the middle of the passage.

Synoptic chart from Fiji met service

Synoptic chart from NZ met service

The stationary ftont had some big embedded storm cells but thankfully they were scattered and we didn't encounter any.  Some boats had 50-60 knots to contend with.  The nastiest part for us was before the wind set in but the sea state was ugly with 3m breaking waves on the beam.  I reckon they came from a storm upwind we missed, but we got its waves which were tumbling once out of the wind.

Through the front under storm staysail & trisail-sized main

Seaway

Looking at NoForeignLand showed over 70 yachts enroute to New Zealand with us, from Tonga, Fiji and elsewhere.  The officials told us they were setting a new record for the number of boats being cleared in one day at Opua.

So it was an interesting passage!  It was great to arrive in New Zealand - our primary goal for the year.  Now we have an entirely different country and climate to enjoy over the summer.

Trust all's well where you are!